Church ain’t over ‘til the fat lady sings — or, in this case, until My Morning Jacket are good and ready.
The Louisville natives are known to play a lengthy set, which appeals to most people so long as you’re either a baby boomer or on some sort of mind-altering substance. On Sunday night in Columbus at the LC Pavilion, it’s possible nearly every person was one or the other. That or maybe we all just came together to appreciate what the Indie Rock jam band had to offer.
To my pleasant surprise, Band of Horses opened up for the band — a piece of information I didn’t bother to find out until my friend and I recognized frontman Ben Bridwell’s distinctive voice from the beer tent.
“Is that Band of Horses?”
“By golly, I think it is.”
Unfortunately, they weren’t really anything to write home about. A bit on the boring side, the band showed the same amount, if not less, energy than any other given southern Indie Rock band. I appreciated the hits, like “Is There a Ghost” and “The Funeral” as much as the next guy, but there was some sort of intangible barrier, either coming from my point of view or theirs that made the whole thing not as special. I guess they were leaving that up to their “heroes,” My Morning Jacket. And so were we.
By this point, the sun was going down and everyone had had their decent fill of 32 oz beers and marijuana cigarettes (isn’t that what you call those things these days?). Jim James, or as I like to call him, “Yimmy Yammies,” took the stage donned in some sort of blue cape. At last! Our super hero! He and his fellow band mates all took their respective places and began forcefully with “Heartbreakin’ Man.” James’ falsetto boldly took shape within the dope-stained air, and the audience was nearly forced by this invisible entity to get ta’ groovin’.
Roughly two-and-a-half hours and about 20 songs later and somehow everyone seemed lost in time, concerning themselves only with embracing every goddamn moment — My Morning Jacket included. Deeming us “beautiful fucking people,” James made us feel like there was no other purpose for us than to be standing right there along with him.
The band left the stage, only to rejoin us a few minutes later for the encore — encore number one that is. James played “Hopefully” on his lonesome, with the spotlight glaring down on that glorious bearded silhouette like he was God himself. (Blasphemy!) The band joined him for a few more songs like “Wonderful (The Way I Feel)” and “Wordless Chorus."
And just when we thought it was all over, My Morning Jacket came out one last time for a second encore and played “Steam Engine.” The finale was meant to be, embodying our current state of being perfectly. Relishing in every moment, we went to some kind of church. And it ain’t over to Jim James sings.
